Jason Sandford
Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.
Altamont Brewing in West Asheville is preparing to finally live up to its name and start brewing beer.
The joint on Haywood Road has been operating as a bar since it opened last March. My colleague Tony Kiss aka The Beer Guy reported thusly on Altamont Brewing’s plans:
The brewery part comes later, said partners Ben Wiggins and Gordon Kear, who are building this place and financing it “out of our own pockets,” Wiggins said.
Since brewing equipment is expensive, they’ve opted to begin by selling craft beer, much of it made by Buncombe County’s nine craft breweries. Other than Pabst Blue Ribbon, you probably won’t find any big supermarket beers here.
Altamont will also be heavy on live music, and not just on St. Patrick’s Day, when the popular Freight Hoppers old-time band plays. The pub will feature live bands six nights a week, Wiggins said.
As for the beer, Altamont hopes to be making its own suds by summer. Brewer Kear is already plotting a lineup of beers that might include American pale ale, IPA, extra special bitter, amber ale, golden and hefewiezen.
The brewing system will be fairly small — maybe 7 barrels to start. Mostly, Altamont will sell its beer at the taproom “by the pint,” Wiggins said.
Obviously it has taken a little longer for the guys to get the brewing up and running. But the guys are finally ready to get real and start making their own beer. Look for their first suds to be on sale in about four to six months. When they actually start selling their own brew, Alatamont Brewing I think will come in as Buncombe County’s 14th brewery. All hail Beer City USA.
I’m all for supporting more great local beer and music…but I’ve spent my last night waiting in line to get into this bar. With a measly capacity of 80…they fill up quick on nights were a decent music draw is playing. I live further away and won’t risk it again. After an hour outside…I never got in…and kept being told that I could, of course, buy booze and drink it in the parking lot if I wanted…um, sorry…I came for the music! I was also told, by the door person, that the reason for the low capacity is that they can’t afford to build another bathroom stall for each bathroom???…HOWEVER…there were over 60 people waiting to GIVE THEM MONEY if they could only be let in…if you multiply those folks times the number of night they reach capacity and have to stop letting folks in that would surely be $$$ enough to put in the extra facilities…get with it Altamont and take my money!
As a homeowner who lives near Altamont, I’m happy to support them. And kudos for getting the brewery moving forward. However, the “live music six nights a week” concerns me. There have been some evenings when I go to bed after midnight and the music is still going…and it’s LOUD. And, no, it wasn’t coming from the Get Down. I’m hopeful that the owners respect their neighbors and cut the music off at 10pm on weeknights and midnight on weekends. Many residents have children and/or get to bed early to get up early the next morning. Cheers.
It is not the venue’s fault you chose to live near a commercial area. A bar/venue should be allowed to have music as late as they are legally allowed without whiny neighbors complaining about the noise. This is what happens when you choose to live in a city. 10PM on weekdays? This is Asheville, people like to go out and party. Sounds like you need to move a little further out into the country.
They better make root beer!